Hotline Asia Urgent Appeals -- UA030228(1) |
Respect
Freedom of Expression in Internet Activities
~ PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ~
28 February 2003
Action Requested || Sample Letter || Background |
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Summary Chinese authorities have closed thousands of Internet cafes and denied access to more than half a million websites, including news, political and religious sites, along with some entertainment and educational sites. At least 30,000 state security personnel are believed to be engaged in surveillance of websites, chat rooms and private e-mail messages. According to Amnesty International, there are at least 33 prisoners of conscience known to be detained for posting materials on the Internet to express views or share information. They range from political activists and writers to members of unofficial organizations, including the Falun Gong spiritual movement. Two of those detained for Internet-related offences have died in custody, apparently as a result of torture or ill-treatment at the hands of the police. Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right recognized by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is a signatory. With use of the internet rapidly expanding in the PRC, this media is an important arena for the defence of the freedom of expression. |
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Action Requested Please write polite letters to express your concern about the denial of the right to freedom of expression in the PRC, and the conditions of those who have been arrested for expressing their views through the Internet. Urge the Chinese authorities to uphold the freedom of expression in Internet activities by:
Send letters to: President
Jiang Zemin, People's Republic of China Send copies to:
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Sample
Letter
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Since the commercialisation of the Internet in the PRC in 1995, the PRC has become one of the fastest-growing Internet markets in the world. The number of domestic Internet users is doubling every six months and thousands of websites are being launched. In June 2002 the number of Internet users had reached almost 46 million and experts believe that within the next four years China is likely to become the largest Internet market in the world. The PRC hopes the Internet will help spread technological know-how and boost economic growth in the long run, but is deeply wary of its capability of spreading news and opinions in a society where the Communist Party has tradtionally controlled information. Provisions on Freedom of Opinion and Expression in China According to Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: “Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice". This Covenant was signed by the PRC in 1998. However, many have been reportedly imprisoned in the PRC solely for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression and opinion. They include people who have expressed their views or circulated information via the Internet or email. The provisions set out in the Chinese Criminal Law, and recent regulations, provide the authorities with the means to monitor and control the flow of information on the Internet, keep track of users, enforce responsibilities on operators and police, and punish those who violate provisions affecting the Internet. Scores of administrative regulations governing telecommunications and the Internet have been introduced since 1994. Many update or reinforce earlier regulations, as the perceived threats and challenges to the authorities of the Internet grow or change. These regulations, particularly those concerning "state secrets", are broad and ill-defined. Since 1995 more than 60 rules and regulations have been introduced covering Internet use. Their implementation has often been harsh, resulting in arbitrary arrest, imprisonment, sometimes torture, confiscation of equipment and heavy fines. Since January 2001, those who provide "state secrets" over the Internet to overseas organizations and individuals may be sentenced to death. New organizations have also been set up to control the use of the Internet, including the State Council's Internet Propaganda Administrative Bureau, which guides and monitors the content of Chinese websites, and the Ministry of Public Security Computer, Monitoring and Supervision Bureau. Recent Internet-related Arrests and Detention Liu Di, 22, known by her Internet pen name as “the Stainless Steel Mouse,” was detained on 7 November 2002. Police told Liu’s family in mid-December that the fourth-year student in the psychology department at Beijing Normal University, was arrested for her links with an “illegal organization,” but did not provide further details, nor was her family allowed to visit her. Li Yibin, 28, publisher of the online pro-democracy magazine “Democracy and Freedom”, was secretly detained around the same time as Liu Di. The present whereabouts of both is still unconfirmed. Tao Haidong, 45, who had been missing for several months, went to trial on 8 January 2003 at the Urumqi People’s Intermediate Court. Tao has been charged with “inciting to overthrow state power” because of opinions he posted on the Internet. On 16 February 2003, he was sentenced to 7 years in prison for publishing articles critical of the Chinese government, and 3 years deprivation of political rights. Ouyang Yi, 35, an Internet activist, was detained on 4 December 2002 and charged on 7 January 2003 with “inciting to overthrow state power.” He is detained in the Sichuan Province No. 1 Detention Center, and faces a prison sentence of up to 15 years if convicted. He is also one of the dissidents arrested in connection with the open letter to the 16th Party Congress in November 2002, of which he was a petition signatory. Amnesty International (AI) has documented the cases of 33 people. Most have been charged with 'subversion'. (For more information, please refer to: People's Republic of China: State Control of the Internet in China, ASA 17/007/2002 and People's Republic of China: State Control of the Internet in China - appeal cases, ASA 17/046/2002) AI claims that for every single individual released, many more continue to be detained in the PRC in violation of their fundamental human rights, and that the institutional framework that allows such violations in the PRC remains unchanged. In most of the cases, Chinese officials have, after secretly arresting and trying/charging them, reportedly declined to notify the dissidents’ families of the reasons for their arrest, the locations where they are being held, or any other circumstances of their detention. Human Rights in China and the International Federation for Human Rights (HRIC/FIDH) fear that many more Internet activists have been arrested over the past months, but that most of these activists have little contact with the outside world, and their disappearance has not yet come to international attention. The recent arrests seem to be part of increasing efforts by the Chinese authorities to crack down on free dissemination of news and discussion over the Internet. Net Censorship and Concerns After a fire in an Internet cafe in Beijing in June 2002, the authorities closed thousands of Internet cafes and demanded that those allowed to reopen do so only after installing filtering software to block Web sites considered "politically sensitive" or "reactionary". The software prevents access to 500,000 foreign web sites. In late August 2002 China blocked access to Google, a popular Internet search engine, diverting users to local Chinese search engines instead. Access to the major sites on Tibet and Taiwan were out of reach. Later, Beijing opened up some previously blocked Web sites, but made it impossible for users to open documents on those sites that relate to the PRC. The Ministry of State Security has reportedly installed tracking devices on Internet service providers to monitor individual e-mail accounts and all Internet cafes are required to register and inform the police about their customers. The Chinese authorities have also forced Internet companies to take greater responsibility for policing the web. A "Public Pledge on Self-Discipline" was introduced in August 2002 under which signatories agree not to post "pernicious" information that may "jeopardise state security, disrupt social stability, contravene laws and spread superstition and obscenity". The pledge has been signed by over 300 companies, including the popular international search engine Yahoo. According to a study by Harvard Law School researchers in 2002, the PRC has the most extensive Internet censorship in the world, regulary denying users access to 19,000 web sites the government deems threatening. Chinese users often cannot reach sites run by Amnesty International or Human Rights Watch. The PRC also does not allow users to connect to major Western religious sites. News media sites are also often blocked. Only the most determined users can evade the fitlering and they do so at some perosnal risk, the study says. AI has urged the government to review certain regulations and other measures restricting freedom of expression over the Internet in order to comply with international standards. They also raised concerns that some overseas companies have reportedly sold technology to the PRC, which has been used by the Chinese authorities to censor the Internet. "As China's role as an economic and trading partner grows, multinational companies have a particular responsibility to ensure that their technology is not used to violate fundamental human rights," Amnesty International said. [Sources: Amnesty International, HRIC/FIDH, International Herald Tribune, South China Morning Post, ABC Radio Australia News] |
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